Humanity's last stand
by Abhorsen Rider
Summary: A couple of years after the end of HoO, Monsters started appearing in their thousands and attacking all humans. Now, humanity has been pushed back to Iberia, a peninsula in the south of Europe. Percy Jackson is the last commander in humanity's army. The whole of humanity rests on his shoulders, and there is no seven to help him now. And you thought Gaia was bad? Pertemis.
1. Chapter 1

"Sir, we must retreat!"

"Don't you think i know that! Just hold on a bit more!"

"But sir!"

"Ensign!"

"Y-Yes sir?"

"You have my orders. Go."

"S-Sir, yes sir!" The ensign ran off, trembling with fright of the commander.

The commander looked out at the battlefield with heavy eyes. The eyes were a sight to behold. While the pupil was black like anyone else's, any normalcy that might be associated with the eyes stopped there. The sclera, normally white, was silver instead. The iris was menagerie of colors. There were slivers of turquoise, red, and an assortment of other, barely noticeable colors, all enveloped by black, which constituted the most of the iris. but perhaps the most terrifying was his left eye. While the right was intensely surveying the battlefield, his left was closed by a scar which ran perfectly down the middle of it, from the top of the forehead to his jawbone.

"Commander, the civilians have been evacuated. They are going towards the Pyrenees and will be in Iberia proper in about a week."

"Good. Signal th-"

He was about to signal the retreat before he herd something truly terrifying. The war drums wielded by the monsters sped up their pace when a roar was heard throughout the battlefield. Suddenly, a massive beast came into view. The beast was a hellhound, as big as a castle. The enemy monsters roared and charged the few garrison battalions which were still standing.

"Steady!"He yelled towards the soldiers. It wouldn't do much, but it was all he could do for now.

"Get down there and ready the troops. I'll get us out of here."

"But you will die!"

"Just do it!" He roared.

He closed his eye and focused. Slowly, the sounds of clashing weapons and yells of pain as the life of soldiers fell faded out of his mind. Slowly, he breathed in, out and committed his energy into teleporting the two hundred soldiers still standing. A flash of silver, akin to a god teleporting, appeared as the two hundred or so people teleported to a safe location, burning the monsters behind them who did not have any time to look away.

-(The Olympian Council, Olympus)-

"But Father-"

"I will not hear anymore on this matter, Artemis. I have made my decision and it's final."

"They are getting slaughtered!"

"The ancient laws-"

"Are going to be worthless if we don't do something!"

Zeus' face grew red from anger and indignation before he made to grab his master bolt. His wife stopped him, however, before he could act.

"If there is nothing else, this council meeting is over."

He was about to flash out before an iris message appeared in the center of the room.

"Lord Zeus!" A soldier quickly bowed in the Iris message.

"Who are you?" Zeus asked.

"An officer. The commander is currently incapacitated.

Whispers of confusion and slight fear broke out in the council. What could incapacitate the commander? Even Zeus was surprised, his eyes widening before they narrowed.

"Why is he incapacitated?"

"He used a large amount of his energy to flash the soldiers of the battlefield."

"And why are you here?"

"To report the end of the battle of Montauban. The battle ended with the commander teleporting the soldiers to a safe place. As a result of the retreat, all people beyond the Pyrenees are currently evacuating and should all reach the mountains within the week." He concluded before swiping his hand through the message and ending the call. The council erupted into a cacophony of shouts as the gods came into realization of what this meant.

"Silence!" The council was stunned into silence by Hestia, who showed anger in her eight year old face. she grew to her fifteen foot godly form and looked sternly at the gods of the council, especially Zeus.

Zeus noticed, and his indignation flared."You do not order silence in _my_ hall."

"Don't you _dare_ tell me what i can and cannot do, little brother! You have no right! I am sick of watching my family bicker with each other while families are destroyed by the hundreds! Tell me, do you feel weak? Tired? Do you know why? Because less and less sacrifice to us. And i don't blame them. They shouldn't sacrifice to us. Only a few of us have done anything to help them, and it's all because of your _fucking rules_! So do not tell me what i can or cannot do until you _grow up and get over yourself_!" Almost all gods present were stunned again. Hestia never cursed, and very rarely did she get angry. Of course, Zeus took no notice as he got up and faced Hestia.

"How dare you call me _little brother?!_ I am your king!"

"I call you little brother because that is what you are, nothing else!"

" _HOW DARE YOU?! I AM YOU KING!_ " Zeus grasped his master bolt and summoned thunder of unprecedented proportions, supposedly to intimidate his sister. She was unfazed, however, and the Hearth grew into a pillar of white, searing flames, flames hot enough to melt the ceiling and shoot into the sky, burning past the cloud layer. She plunged a hand into the pillar and pulled out a celestial bronze _xiphos_ ( **A.N.: The traditional Greek sword.** ** _Anaklusmos_** **is a** ** _xiphos_**.) The blade glowed bright white, as if it contained the heat of the Hearth itself inside the blade.

Zeus hesitated slightly before lunging at Hestia with his master bolt in the form of a celestial bronze spear. Hestia sidestepped and surged forward, rendering the spear useless. before Zeus could react, Hestia held her sword at his throat. Zeus gulped and lowered his spear.

"You are no king of mine."She said coldly before flashing out, the Hearth now no more than a few glowing embers.


	2. Chapter 2

-(20 miles from the Pyrenees)-

The hospital was quiet, the residents going to sleep as the sun set and the moon rose. A flash briefly illuminated the room where the commander of the Iberian army, humanity's last army, lay. Hestia sat next to the bed where the figure she considered to be her son lay. He looked peaceful, without the weight of protecting Iberia, the only territory which hadn't been overrun by monsters. She was brought out of the slight trance she was in when her son started fidgeting and turning and twisting, murmuring things she couldn't hear. She lay her hand on his chest, a chest which almost looked like it was craved out of marble if it wasn't for the occasional scar which marked him as a battle-hardened warrior. The rest of his body was the same, muscled but not overly so, like a hunter. It all looked like it was carved from marble if it weren't for the scars. The only exception was his face, which looked much softer than the rest of the body, the jawbone not yet completely defined, making look twenty instead of thirty-five, his real age.

Hestia brought him out of the nightmare he was experiencing and gave him a pleasant dream instead. He smiled briefly before his eyes fluttered open.

"Mom?"

"Percy!" She lunged forward and hugged her son, tears of happiness finding her way onto his shoulder as she cried.

"Hey mom." He hugged her tighter, hoping to provide some comfort and relief.

"What did i say about you scaring me?"

"...i don't remember."

"Percy!"

"Sorry, I'm sorry! It won't happen again!"

"That's what you said last time."

"This time i mean it!"

"So you didn't mean it last time?"

"I-But-No..." He stumbled to find an answer before he saw his mother laugh."Hey! That's not funny!"

"It would be if you were the one watching."She replied, hugging him even harder.

"C-Can't...breathe..."

"Sorry."

"That's alright. Now, i've got to get dressed, and see what's going on." He made to get up only to get shoved back down.

"Oh, no you don't. You're resting."

"But the war..."

"Can wait. You are resting."

"But-"

"But nothing! When was the last time you had a day off?"

"*sigh*Fine. I'll rest."

"Good." She smiled. She summoned a meal for him and he wolfed it down in hopes of regaining his energy quickly."Now, i've got to return to the council. I'll see you later." She kissed his cheek and flashed out. He laid down and tried to rest, but found he could not. Well, if i get out and do something that's not related to military, i won't be going to be going against mother...right?

He quickly got dressed with clothes the hospital gave him and headed for his home, avoiding the main streets and taking the alleys instead. All was going fine it weren't for a scream of panic that was briefly heard before it was muffled. He headed towards the sound, and saw a truly unusual sight.

There were around a dozen men holding down a Hunter of Artemis, whose hunter clothes were torn up, supposedly from the fight that caused all the bodies of men that littered the ground of the street.

"Do you know the penalty for attacking a Hunter?"

"Heh? Who ar-Shit!"

"I asked if you knew the penalty. Answer."

"Y-Yes sir!"

"Then why should i not enforce the law of the gods and the law of men?"

"We're sorry sir!"

They trembled in terror of the person in front of them, some of them going as far as half-kneeling, half-bowing. The Hunter stood unsteadily and tried to look at the newcomer through the haze of blood loss and pain. The men which had been doing some king of bowing had run off, and the other person approached her. She assumed he was male and desperately searched for anything she could use.

"No need to be afraid." He said, with a voice so warm she pleasurably shivered."Can you stand?"

"Y-Yeah..."

"Good."He quickly pulled his hoodie off and before she could react the hoodie rested on her 5'4" frame, which contrasted massively with his 6' towering figure. He put an arm around her shoulders.

"W-What are you doing?!"She asked, her cheeks briefly reddening.

"Do you want attacked again? No one dares attack you if we're like this."

"Yeah, but-"

"But?"

She opened her mouth to answer but realized how futile it was. Thankfully, they moved at a brisk pace, and soon came to what looked like a regular home, two stories, porch, small garden, the deal. That is, if it weren't for two banners hanging either side of the door, marking him of considerable rank in humanity's elite. they stepped inside, and again, the whole thing looked completely normal if it weren't for the completely bare walls, and the five maids that greeted him.

"Prepare a shower and a change of clothes for her. Get my outfit ready."

They nodded before three whisked off to complete his requests. One of the remaining maids poured him a glass of what looked to be gin from a hidden compartment before helping the last maid, who was guiding her to what she assumed was a shower.

-(Upstairs, in Percy's room)-

He took of his t-shirt, trousers, boxers, socks and shoes, finally getting rid of the clothes the hospital gave him. A maid grabbed his clothes and took them to be cleaned and stored as he strode towards the Jacuzzi sized pool and lowered himself in. Two maids that had remained in the room got to work pouring mysterious substances and salts to ensure the bath would revitalize him. Once they were done he thanked them before relaxing even further into the bath.

Who would have guessed that being the last commander in humanity's armies would be stressful? He sighed. He wished for the simple days as a simple demigod. though he guessed that he had never had a normal life. At age sixteen he stopped Kronos, which seemed like child's play when, only a few years later, he joined the rest of the seven and literally went through hell and back. But even that seems...simple. Easy. One person, or being, to target. A prophecy to guide him. Companions who he could fight with. Now...now it was simply a hoard of monsters, a hoard which sprawled almost the whole of earth. From a global population of eleven billion at it's peek, mankind quickly fell from eleven to nine, to six, to two, seven hundred million, to two hundred, to hundred and fifty, to seventy million people left in earth. And that's without counting the people who made it to Iberia.

Iberia...a land full of culture and history. Inhabited for a hundred and twenty million years, most noticeably by the Phoenicians and Romans, before being one of the major sites of the first Crusade, following a pseudo-holy war which had been brewing long before the crusades. An important center of trade as the coast that trade has to pass to leave the Mediterranean sea. Portugal became a haven for the crusaders who were prosecuted by the Vatican by founding the order of the cross. Once again made important with Portugal starting the age of discoveries and Spain and Portugal literally dividing the world in half between the two, defying the Vatican because they felt like it. All through it's history, exemplified by the carnation revolution in the twenty-fifth of April, 1974, where the longest regime in Europe fell with only four people killed; Iberians show above all willingness to fight to the last breath as long as they believed in their cause. Add in the fact that the peninsula is almost completely separated by the Pyrenees, and overall, it's not the worst place to name "Humanity's last hope". Still...

He was brought out of his musings by a knock at the door.

"Come in." A maid walked in carrying a bunch of clothes in her arm.

"Your outfit is ready."

He made his way out of the bath and the maid handed him a towel before laying out his clothes on the pristine floor. He dried himself and then got dressed, taking his time to savour the cleanliness of the clothes before undoubtedly ruining them in the battlefield. He surveyed himself in the mirror, making sure not one detail was off. His Onyx black combat boots were polished perfectly, and were perfectly symmetrical when he stood. His trousers, which looked like simple black jeans, were specially designed to incorporate armor made out of an alloy of Olympian silver, Celestial bronze, Imperial gold and Stygian Iron, providing extra strong protection against just about anything. Finally, his weapons. First, a _Xiphos_ on a sheath which rested on his left hip and was made of the same alloy as the armor in his jeans. Then, an Imperial gold _Spatha_ for when he was on horseback rested on his right hip. While it would be harder to pull out at a moment's notice, that shouldn't be as big a problem as losing the ability to quickdraw the _Xiphos_. Further up, twelve throwing knifes made out of Olympian silver and Celestial bronze. They rested in sheaths that would magically replenish them. And finally, a bow was slung over his shoulders in a way that makes sure that it isn't uncomfortable. Also over his back was a rectangular quiver. The quiver housed arrows of Olympian silver and would magically replenish them. Over his weapons and much of the trousers was a trench coat that most people would recognize him by. It looked like a normal brown leather trench coat. However, the trench coat had three differences. One, that instead of ending with a collar, it ended in a hood that was big enough to conceal the wearer's face. Two, the trench coat was made entirely out of the same material that the trousers were. Three, and the most important, it was blessed by the council and much of the lower gods.

"Do you know where Lady Artemis and her Hunt are?"

"I heard they were last seen in the field to the south of the city."

"Thank you."

He headed downstairs, where the hunter was standing with three of the maids. She was slightly flushed, almost like she was embarrassed. Hunter pride really is a thing apparently. He and the hunter headed down the street to a stable where Blackjack was. Sometimes he missed cars. But they couldn't afford something like that, their resources were strained as it was, the demand for metal to build the cars would simply be too much, not to mention fuel.

"Hey boss."

"Hey Blackjack."

"So, where're we heading? And who's the lady? Don't tell me you got with a hunter!"

"We're heading south, for the hunters. And no, i didn't get with a hunter, i'm bringing her to them."

"Ummmmmmmm, why are you talking to a horse?"

"I'm a Pegasus, dammit!"

"Because i'm a son of Poseidon. Sons of Poseidon can talk to horses." He climbed up on Blackjack and looked at the hunter expectantly."Well, come on, we haven't got all day."

"On the same horse?"

"You ain't getting another horse anytime soon. So, either this one or walking."

"I'm not a horse! Get it right."

"I'd rather walk."

"Okay. But i'll explain that you would rather not return to the hunt."

"What? What about walking?"

"It would take too long. they would move on to the next location."

Her face flared up before calming down and climbing on to Blackjack's back. We wasted no time riding to the streets and taking off. Soon enough, the hunter camp was in view.

"Land here."

"You got it boss."

We got off and walked a few miles before i sensed Lady Artemis and kneeled. The hunter ran over to her sisters and they started talking, probably about what i did.

"Perseus."

"Lady Artemis."

She walked closer and i could sense the kick but did nothing to stop it as it came, crashing into me and sending me flying across the clearing before crashing into a tree and sliding to the ground. I stood up, took of my trench coat and weapons and kneeled again.

"What are you doing?"She asked after she got over the pain from my armor.

"My trench coat is armored. You will hurt yourself if you hit it. I should have taken it of before coming to you. I apologize."

"Aren't you endangering yourself?"She was confused. Here was a male, who could very easily escape, fight back, gloat, be rude, anything, and yet he was just kneeling.

"Possibly."

"So why not escape? Fight back?"

"I doubt i could escape the best hunter. And i very much doubt i could survive a fight against you, Lady Artemis."

"So why not gloat? You know i can't act against you."

"Gloat? What about?"

"What about? About what you did to my hunter."

He froze before he grew angry. "What do you mean, Lady Artemis?"

She, along with everyone else, was shocked. What was that power? Surely, it was not the person in front of her. "Why else would you be with my hunter?"

"She was attacked by men in an alley. I scared them off and took her home where she was healed, cleaned and dressed before taking her to you."

"And you did nothing?" He shook his head. "Then aren't you going to gloat about saving one of my hunters? Ask for a reward?"

"I have no reason to gloat. Even if they weren't in the army, those men still lived in the same city as me. It is my fault for allowing such actions to go on in my own back alleys." She was completely baffled. She knew he wasn't like normal males, yes, but this! "Though i do have a request. two actually." Huh, spoke too soon.

"What is it?"

"To not blame those men, and to take me to Olympus."

"Why would you want to go to Olympus?"

"I have a request to make to the council."

"That's all?"

"Yes milady."

He stood up and offered his hand. She took it and blushed briefly before flashing to the council room and shooting an arrow to the skies, calling the council.

"What is it daughter?" Zeus asked as he took his seat. His suit was scrunched up and his face was flushed before he willed his clothes to return to normal. Even now, Zeus was still hooking up with mortals.

"Perseus says he has a request to make to the council."

"Well?"


	3. Chapter 3

-Percy POV-

"My request is simple. Get rid of the Ancient Laws." **(A.N. in this story, breaking the laws will drain your powers if you break them. They are controlled solely by Zeus.)**

Immediately The whole council tensed up except Zeus, who was looking at me like he wanted to blast me to high heaven.

"What do you mean get rid of the Ancient Laws?!"

"The Ancient Laws: a set of arbitrary rules set by a not-so-powerful god ages ago for reasons that died when humans went from almost eight BILLION to SEVENTY MILLION! I DON't GIVE A FLYING FUCK FOR YOUR EGO, EVEN YOU HAVE TO REALIZE YOU WILL MEAN EXACTLY FUCK ALL TO ANYONE ONCE EVERYONE IS DEAD!"

"YOU WILL NOT TO ME LIKE THAT!" Zeus grew to his fifteen foot form, trying to intimidate me. Ha, please. Dad gripped his trident and mom got ready to confront her brother again, but i beat them to it.

"OR WHAT?!" My eye glowed red, blue and silver as i released my power all at once. The pulse was enough to knock Zeus into his throne, and i myself grew to fifteen feet with my sheer powers alone. I walked to his throne and looked him in the eyes, and i could see that he was scared beyond belief. Too easy. "What will you do, Zeus? Smite me with your bolt?"

Zeus tried to reach for his bolt, but i picked it up before he could. I focused my powers on it and it cracked. "Is this what was supposed to kill me?" I poured a bit more power and the bolt shattered into a million pieces.

"I-I will never get rid of the ancient laws. NEVER!"

"*sigh*Your lucky i need you."

"What do you mean, i'm lucky?! Your the one who's lucky! As soon as we can find a new commander, i will get rid of you!"

I laughed. "And where are you going to find the power to do it? Or enough water from the rivers of the Underworld to do it?"

"Water from the Underworld?" Athena spoke up, looking annoyed that she didn't know what they were talking about.

"You didn't tell them?"

"Tell us what?"

"How to become a commander."

"YOU WILL NOT TELL THEM! YOU CANNOT!" He sounded slightly pleading there. Wonder if it's enough to get him to get rid of the laws? Nah, he's ego is to big. I knocked him out with a well placed punch and sat in the middle of the room.

"Now that he's shut up, we can continue. What Zeus didn't tell you is that being a commander isn't just accepting certain blessings and going through training. He wanted more. So he thought up a process through which we could be strengthened and empowered, supposedly to an Olympian level."

The council erupted into arguments, ranging from 'He would never do that!' to 'I'm going to kill him when he wakes up.

"Hold up, don't start arguing yet. It's even worse than you think. You see, the process was to join the five waters from the rivers of the Underworld and then infuse that with the powers of the Olympians. And the way he did that was by taking pieces of your thrones."

The council once again erupted into arguments, but this time it was all 'He can't do that! It's trespassing on another god's domain!'

"He blocked out the throne room and then used demigods who he fooled, just like the twenty of us."

"Twenty?"

"Twenty commanders."

"I thought there was only three."

"Only three survived."

"Who were the others?"

"Demigods, Immortals. There's no point in worrying about them right now. We've got bigger things that we should be worried about. Speaking of which, i have some catching up to do with my men." I turned to leave and was nearly out the room when someone pulled me back.

"Oh, no you don't. I remember specifically telling you to rest."

"But mom!"

"No. It's almost night, so you can just stay here and rest. You can catch up tomorrow."

"But-"

"Perseus." She said warningly. It would have even been tense, were it not for the gods laughing from seeing the six foot commander being told off by the eight year old Hestia.

"Fine." I gave up and just went to her palace, which had a room for me.I was distracted, and i needed to think something over.

-(In Hestia's palace, Percy POV)-

I have been emotionally dead for a very long time now. I had no reason to feel anything, except maybe my mom and dad. But even then... So why had i felt so... giddy when i heard Artemis' laugh? Was that the right word, giddy? I didn't know. It was strange. Why would he feel that? He was a commander, he could die at any minute, and she was a goddess that prided herself on chastity and who had a group of highly dangerous man-hater hunters. *sigh* Will Aphrodite ever give me a break?

Little did he know, just down the road, a certain goddess was having the exact same problem


	4. Chapter 4

\- (Olympus, Artemis' POV)-

What was with that man? He made absolutely no sense. He had power, yet was humble. He was infuriating, but kind. He was mature. Honest. And above all he was selfless. He didn't show it, of course, so there was some of that senseless male pride. But then again, he didn't need to. Anyone could see it. That look. That attitude and logic. Cold and hard, but somehow...human. It was something only war would do. That hardening, that desensitizing. And yet, someone who knew him would be able to tell that his old personality was there, that carefree, absent-minded attitude that made him so famous in Olympus. He was such a mystery.

The biggest mystery was his loyalty to his friends, family and loved ones. When Sally Jackson died, Olympus as a whole mourned. Everyone knew of the mother of the Hero of Olympus, and someone like her, who was able not only of shaping a hero like that man but further shaping the council after the war with Gaia, was worthy of respect. But he went above a minute of silence and a speech at her funeral. He himself got together materials and, with the help of the daughter of Athena, he built a temple and memorial to his mother. And he didn't brag of the feat, he built it solely for his mother.

The daughter of Athena. She was a mystery all by herself. She seemed like a perfectly respectable woman, if not a bit prideful, but what the real mystery was her was the one who bragged of the feat of building that temple, very much the opposite of what I would expect. None of the veteran demigods believed her when she said Perseus had nothing to do with it, but the newer ones believed her. And so she caught the attention of a son of Zeus, who she almost immediately got involved with. And through him, she gained power, and her pride got the best of her. She then claimed she had surpassed even her mother, and tried taking Athena's place in the council. For a daughter of Athena, she was incredibly stupid. She betrayed both Perseus and the gods, and so was punished in the fields of punishment, along with Zeus' son. Everyone was surprised, and many were distraught, but Perseus and Thalia took it especially hard. Perseus for obvious, albeit surprising reasons for a man. Thalia was distraught because she practically raised the daughter of Athena.

Thalia...I wondered where my former lieutenant was, and how she was faring. They had been separated, back in America, and she had never been heard of since. While I was worried, I wouldn't be surprised if Thalia was still alive. She had been the Hunter's lieutenant. She probably found the rest of the veterans of the war with Gaia. If she has found the demigods of the prophecy of the seven that were left behind, she is most definitely alive. I did briefly wonder about the rest of the seven. I never got too close with any of them, but they were still very powerful and important demigods. Jason Grace and Piper McLean had died of old age after revoking their immortality. They said they wanted to die in the other's arms. The rest of the demigods had been left in America, along with other veterans. Nico Di'Angelo had also been left in America.

Chiron was, thankfully, still alive. He was doing his job as a trainer, as he had been for as long as there have been heroes. He was a male that I would say everyone is thankful for, including me.

Overall, the reason why this was the man's biggest mystery was the fact that this man had barely anyone left. He had Chiron, Poseidon and Hestia. So why was he fighting? And why did he do it so...humbly? If what he said is true, which Apollo says it is, he would have enough power to overthrow us, demand anything of us, or at the very least brag incessantly about it. But he doesn't. He just does his job.

I was brought out of my thoughts when I noticed the very man I was thinking of standing in front of me, looking towards the stars and moon and leaning on the low wall. I couldn't help but notice how good he looked. He was 6'3", with quite a strong frame built more for agility than for brute strength, and yet retaining a sort of look that made him seem twenty instead of the thirty something he actually was. The moonlight perfectly illuminated his face, which looked completely serene and calm, none of the weight of war showing on him except for the scars which were barely noticeable if it weren't for the scar which covered his eye. Not too far away from said scar was a small bit of grey hair which contrasted with his deep raven hair, another reminder of one of his accomplishments, this one of the first ones. I felt a feeling she could not name, a sort of happiness, when I remembered the fact that he had held the sky for me. This was another mystery, his affects on me. I always felt this strange sort of happiness whenever I was with him, and I could not understand it.

I was brought out of my thoughts once again by the same man, this time looking at me.

"Lady Artemis." He bowed.

"Stand Perseus."

He made a face at that, and said "Could you call me Percy, milady? I really do not like Perseus."

"But Perseus is your name, isn't it?"

"Yes, but-"

"I will call you by your name."

"But, milady-"He looked distraught before gaining a grin," If you won't call me Percy, then I'll call you Moonbeam."

"You will not call me Moonbeam!"

"If you call me Percy."

How could this man be so frustrating! And yet, even something like this, which should have made her angry, just left her with this strange fluttering feeling. What was that? That feeling?

"May I ask why you are not driving the chariot?"

"Ah, well, I felt like taking a walk. Why are you not in Hestia's palace? Seems to me like she'd kill you if she found out you're not resting."

He paled a bit, probably thinking of what Hestia could do. For a peaceful goddess, she was one of the scariest when she was angry. Add that to the fact that she's the most powerful Olympian, and anyone would be right to fear her. "Same thing. Besides, it doesn't feel right that I be up here, safe and sound, while my men and women fight down there as we speak. I don't belong here, I belong down there, in the field."

I could understand that. I didn't like being here as well, while my Hunters were down there.

"*sigh* Well, good night. Moonbeam." He grinned at the last word and tried to walk off, but before he could get too far, I tackled him to the ground and pinned him, pressing one of my hunting knifes to his throat.

"You will not call me Moonbeam!"

"Only if you don't call me Perseus."

"Why do you hate your name so much?"

"Because only people who want to kill me call me that. First it was Zeus, then the Titans, the Gigantes, Gaia, and just about every monster that can speak."

"I will call you by your name and that's final."

"Fine. And I will call you Moonbeam. Or perhaps Arty would be better."

"You will not call me either! Most definitely not Arty!"

"Okay, Moonbeam it is." He grinned again, but gaining a light blush. "So, I should probably get back up."

I looked down and blushed at our position briefly before getting of him so he could stand up. "Thanks." He smiled at me, a genuine smile that showed no particular emotion but somehow, at the same time, it showed all emotions. I broke myself out of my little daze and returned the smile.

"You should probably go back to Hestia's palace."

"Probably. But I think I would rather stay out here. Besides, I would never forgive myself for giving up such a beautiful night." He looked up at the night sky in contemplation. I couldn't help but notice how the soft light of the night sky perfectly framed his face, highlighting his features. The set jaw that was defined, but still looked soft, his scars which instead of being hideous or scary or anything like that, simply aided his look of a hardened warrior. But all those features were ignored when she looked at his eye. When she first saw it, it was slightly disturbing, however, now that she was used to it, it looked beautiful to her, the swirl of colours. She always felt a small burst of pride when she saw that silver was one of the main colours in the chaotic pattern of his eye. She knew it was stupid, since he probably didn't choose that pattern and those colours, but she still felt it. And when she remembered her feeling when she saw the colour in his eye, she was always confused. What was it that had her emotions in such turmoil?

She looked at the night sky in contemplation, trying her hardest to understand her feelings, when she heard him speak.

"Do you know what the situation down there is?"

"You shouldn't worry about the war. I doubt the monsters would attack this soon. And even if they did, the soldiers can defend themselves."

"It's not the war that has me worried, I know my soldiers can hold their own, it's the state that the general populace is in. There's no hiding that our situation is far from the best. That attack on one of your own hunters...Oh, now that you mention, I haven't properly apologized, have I?"

I was about to say that he needn't apologise, after all it wasn't his fault, when suddenly I sensed something careening towards us.

"Get down!"

He shot to the floor as soon as I said it, and just in time too, because the projectile passed just over our heads and hit one of the temples, rendering it to nothing but dust.

I slowly got up, making sure to pay attention to any other projectiles.

"My lady, warn the council. The monster hoard has reached our boarders and has officially attacked Olympus. I will hold them as much as possible. Gather your hunters afterwards and meet me on the battlefield."

Before I could say anything he jumped and flew in the direction of the projectile, breaking the sound barrier several times in just seconds. I flashed to the council chamber and called the council. They were here in no time, and got in their thrones immediately. I guess not even Zeus' ego could ignore an attack like that.

"We all felt that attack. We all know what it means. I suggest we meet Perseus on the battlefield, by the border. I will gather my hunters and head over there immediately."

I flashed out and gathered my hunters, simply telling them that we had a battle to join. We flashed over there to meet a visage as hellish as Tartarus.


End file.
